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Apr 9, 2026; New York, New York, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) looks on during the first half against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Lucas Boland-Imagn Images
How does no one have a firm grip on how tall Jayson Tatum is?
He's one of the best basketball players in the world, a champion with the Boston Celtics and an Olympic gold medalist with Team USA. But it feels that there isn't a single player in the NBA with more height uncertainty than Tatum.
It's not like he's absurdly tall or absurdly short, either.
He's a wing, a small forward or a power forward in the classic terminology. It should be simple.
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How tall is Jayson Tatum?
Tatum is listed by ESPN at 6-foot-8.
That's how tall he was listed in his lone season at Duke, and it's never changed on those official sources.
But as far back as 2020, then-Celtics coach Brad Stevens was calling Tatum 6-10.
Stevens walked that back months later: "I was just talking about it in terms of, he's long, he's active."
OK, so the listed 6-foot-8 doesn't imply similar attributes?
"Tatum came in the next day and he was just laughing," Stevens said in 2020. "And I said, 'The good news is, we can pretty much start anything. I just have to say it. So, we had a good laugh about it.'"
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And now here in 2026, Tatum himself is talking about it.
In a recent podcast appearance, he had this to say:
“If you check ESPN, it says I’m 6-8, 210, but that was from my second year. I’ve definitely gotten taller since. I’d honestly say I’m 6-9, probably around 6-10 in-game.”
It even gets down to the semantics of how his game shoes impact his height, apparently.
The reality is that it doesn't matter, because Tatum is a superstar regardless of what his listed height is.
It's just fascinating that no one can nail it down.
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